The Hello Kitty Pop-Up Cafe is Finally, Seriously, For Real Opening Up in Irvine This Week

It’s been a long time coming. The Hello Kitty Cafe pop-up container was supposed to open up last summer, then was slated for November before getting pushed back yet again. No more waiting — on Friday, the shipping container really will open up, and its cargo of cute Hello Kitty treats will be available to all in and around Orange County, California.

As a refresher, the shipping container cafe is based on the Hello Kitty Cafe Truck, which has been traveling around the country since last year. The same Hello Kitty-themed doughnuts, mini-cakes, and cupcakes found in the cafe truck will be found in the shipping container (as promised before, painted pink and decked out with Sanrio characters), but it looks like the waiting hasn’t been for nothing. The Hello Kitty Cafe will now have artisinal sodas (you know Hello Kitty’s on-trend), along with Portola Lab Coffee espresso drinks. The bakery menu has been expanded past what the truck offers, and a special tea service is being planned for later in the year. Oh, and you know there’s going to be merch.

As has always been planned, the container cafe will open at the Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine, CA, and can be found in the Giant Wheel Court. Grand opening events and giveaways will last through the weekend, after which the Hello Kitty Pop-Up Cafe will be open for regular business. We don’t know how long it’ll be around, but if they’re planning on adding tea service later, lasting until at least fall seems likely. We’ll keep our fingers crossed!